The Government is beginning to sell its carbon tax to Australian industry and households after yesterday announcing details of the controversial scheme.

Sunday's announcement revealed about 500 big polluters will pay an initial $23 per tonne from July, with the tax rising by 2.5 per cent a year until the tax changes to an emissions trading scheme in 2015.

The Government has promised billions in compensation via tax reform and direct payments, and says the average household will be 20 cents a week better off.

In many ways the coming weeks will resemble an election campaign with both sides of politics stating their respective carbon cases as they criss-cross the country.

The policy is likely to make or break Prime Minister Julia Gillard's leadership.

She has vowed to "wear out her shoe leather" selling the plan to Australians, and will take to the airwaves on ABC's Q&A tonight to do just that.

Labor MPs armed with carefully tailored fact sheets on the carbon tax are now fanning out across the country with orders to sell the Government's signature policy.

Climate Change Minister Greg Combet will also be aiming to sell the controversial plan today at a briefing in the New South Wales Hunter Valley.

Prior to the announcement the mining industry warned of mass job losses and mine closures.

"[There is] $1.3 billion in support for the most affected coal mines and the people who work within them," Mr Combet said.

But the chief executive of the NSW Minerals Council, Nikki Williams, says the compensation package will do little to ease the blow.

"The compensation represents way less than 10 per cent of the cost impost on the coal industry," she said.

There is also assistance for Australia's power generators.

Under the tax some coal-fired power generators could be paid to close, and there are also free carbon permits and access to loans.

But the head of Hunter power producer Macquarie Generation, Russell Skelton, says it is not likely to qualify for assistance.

"In the absence of compensation, effectively we'll be unprofitable fairly quickly," he said.

The Bayswater and Liddell power plants are in the electorate of Labor MP Joel Fitzgibbon, who says industries will be protected.

"Coal mining, aluminium smelting, power generation are all critical sectors in the Hunter and I've been working internally with Greg Combet and others to ensure they're properly protected," he said.

But the miners' union national vice-president Ian Murray says the compensation is generous and the Hunter's coal companies should stop complaining.

"We'll be calling on the industry to immediately end their scare campaign against this carbon pricing package that's out and to get on with the job and work with the Government and work with ourselves," he said.

The scheme is projected to cut 159 million tonnes of carbon pollution from the atmosphere by 2020 - the equivalent of taking 45 million cars off the road.

Labor hopes the compensation for households and industry will blunt the Opposition's campaign, but Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says ALP backbenchers are restive.

"I don't think you should assume that the caucus is solid on this," he said.

"There are lots of Labor members in coal seats, in heavy manufacturing seats who are getting very bad message from their electorate."

Mr Abbott says the Coalition will fight the scheme saying "millions of Australians will be worse off".

Reacting to the Government's announcement, he described the scheme as "socialism masquerading as environmentalism".

"What's the point of all of this? This is a redistribution pretending to be compensation, it's a tax increase pretending to be an environmental policy," he said.

Opposition treasury spokesman Joe Hockey will be in the Brisbane suburb of Rocklea today campaigning against the tax.

He says says it means bigger deficits and more debt.

"The budget is inevitably going to be hard hit," he said.

The Government has been languishing in the polls and not all its backbenchers are bullish.

One told ABC's AM it will take months to regain the initiative, and by then public opinion may have hardened.

But the Illawarra-based Member for Throsby, Stephen Jones, says Labor can fight back.

"Finally we have some facts on the table. The package is a very good one, and I'm keen to get out to my community to talk to them about it," he said.

Environmental groups have welcomed renewable energy investment but say some industries are promised too much assistance.

Greens leader Bob Brown says there has been give and take to get to a world-leading agreement.

Meanwhile Tony Windsor, one of the key independents who helped thrash out the carbon tax deal, says he will still be comfortable with his decision even if voters reject him at the next election.

Mr Windsor says he believes he has acted in the best interests of future generations, not the short-term political cycle.

"It's not about me just being re-elected or just who's going to be the prime minister or about Tony Abbott's short-term history," he said.

"This is about the history of people, most of whom haven't even been born yet. And if I'm sacked from politics because of that, well, I'll remove myself with a smile on my face."

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